A Gastronomical Affair with The Bohri Kitchen
What happens when a family dreams!? And then what happens when all join hands and strive to achieve that dream!!? Sheer Magic!
Each family is special and we are about to share with you a Mumbai Dream that the Kapadias dreamt and turned to reality!
There is nothing more enduring than a home cooked meal or “Maa ke haath ka khaana”, we say here at OCOW!
No Michelin star chef can beat that. Agree?!
So, we are going to say some words and see if your mouth waters.
Mutton Biryani, Dabba Ghost, Kaari Chawal! Is your mouth watering already???
Well, this is just a whiff of what lies ahead for you to read…ummmm eat!
If food is your raison d’être, you like it authentic and want that ghar vali feeling, especially the non vegetarian gastronauts, simply sniff your way to Colaba ki galliyan with your friends and you will find your way to The Bohri Kitchen, lovingly called TBK.
So without much ado, OCOW wants you to grab your forks and spoons (actually you probably wont need them coz we are sure you will end up licking your fingers and smacking your lips, and singing all the way home, when you are done) and open your taste buds to say Hello to The Bohri Kitchen, and the lovely father-mother-son trio, the Kapadia family.
“TBK is an experimental lunch concept where we invite at maximum 14 friends (or friends of friends) to our home for a mouthwatering 3 course Bohri meal” said the Kapadias with great pride when OCOW spoke to them.
The mother (Nafisa Kapadia) is the entrepreneurial chef who uses her years of cooking skills to conceptualise the menu and create the final gastronomic masterpieces which are served to their guests. She is TBKs backbone.
The father (Turab Kapadia) is a full time wholesaler-businessman who first hand acquires the best possible produce available, from his best vendors – located in Colaba/ Crawford market. It’s this produce that does justice to the Chefs’ cooking skills. It’s also the hospitality behind TBK, i.e. how they treat their guests and gently encourage them to eat so-much-more, is directly inspired by him and how he does this with his regular guests.
The son (Munaf Kapadia) is a full time salesman at a leading internet company by weekday, but uses his weekends to contribute to TBK. He is the brains behind the brand, it’s positioning, social media strategy and business rationale of TBK.
So what’s the “Menu” like? Slurrpp!!
“We take considerable effort to not make conventional menus. You will see this not only in the kind of dishes but also in the manner in which we design the communication. We aim to make it more like a story you are a part of and less of the list of items you consume!” exclaimed Munaf.
Menu 1 – Kaju Chicken+
Menu 2 – Mutton Biryani+
Menu 3 – Kaari Chaval & Dabba Ghosht
Menu 4 – Paaya & Mutton Kheema Khichdi
How did they start? The mother-son duo have been exploring ideas for monetising the mother’s skills & free bandwidth for quite some time now. The idea to open ‘The Bohri Kitchen’ restaurant was always just a pipe dream due to entry barriers such as need for real estate, capital investment etc. One day, when Munaf asked his mom ‘whats for lunch?’ and she narrated her plans, it occurred to him why not package this and communicate it to some 50 or so friends in his network, invite them over on a Saturday and see how they react. That’s how TBK started!
What we loved is their Vision…
“Our goal is that one fine Saturday morning, Shahrukh Khan gets out of his Bandra bed, he’s feeling especially hungry and has a pang for some rich, super tasty, non mainstream food.. and it occurs to him, hey lets try and book a seat at The Bohri Kitchen. Thats the kind of exclusivity and awareness we want TBK to have.
And who knows if we reach that stage, maybe existing restauranteurs or investors will consider buying the brand, menu and my moms consultation and go ahead and open the first TBK restaurant in a high profile location in Bombay.”
In the short term (next 3 months), we just hope to consistently keep doing what we are doing, get very good feedback, make people happy and let TBK evolve into something sustainable and oober exciting.”
By now we are sure you have decided to book your chomp dates with TBK. What are you waiting for??? So how does one book, we asked…
To join them at TBK, please follow their FB page/timeline and watch out for the weekly events they host at their place. To join you need to RSVP on the event and drop them a private message with your phone number and they will get in touch with you post that to confirm your RSVP.
They said that they have a “no serial killer policy and unfortunately, since TBK is held at our residence we are sticklers about who we invite. If you have a mutual friend or are the prime minister of a country, it helps.” Now, we say that’s more like an experience we would love, wouldn’t you?
If you have a large group (6+) and would like to organise your very own custom TBK, at a date and time more suited to you, drop them a message with your contact details.
www.facebook.com/thebohrikitchen
Email: thebohrikitchen@gmail.com
Some of TBK’s milestones
TBK in Sunday Times of India, 2nd Page!
Khana Khazana crew at TBK
Gorgeous Review by Brown Paper Bag
The Bohri Kitchen, A Community Dining Experience as written by FoodDrifter!
Comprehensive Review by Daiquiri Diaries